Structural, magnetic, and optical properties of ZnFe2O4/RO (RO = CdO, NiO, Ga2O3, SnO2, and TiO2) nanocomposites

Abstract

The sol–gel method is used to prepare the nanocomposites ZF/RO (ZF = ZnFe2O4, RO = CdO, NiO, Ga2O3, SnO2, and TiO2). The XRD showed that the ZF/RO nanocomposite' crystal structure contained many phases, and the lattice properties and crystal size of the ZF were affected by the presence of the RO traces. All samples have surfaces that resemble nanoflakes that vary in size based on the SEM pictures; however, the ZF/Cd sample has a nanotube microstructure. ESR and VSM were measured at room temperature and showed ferrimagnetic behavior for all samples. The optical properties showed the band gaps for ZF, ZF/Cd, ZF/Ga, ZF/Ni, ZF/Sn, and ZF/Ti nanocomposites were 1.773, 1.789, 1.786, 1.763, 1.822, and 1.835 eV, respectively. The spectral PL intensity of ZF/Sn, ZF/Cd, and ZF/Ti nanocomposites is partially low compared to the spectrum for the ZF, and vice versa for ZF/Ni and ZF/Ga, which show an increase in the recombination for e−/h+. ZF/RO nanocomposites' practical sunlight consumption ability and recombination of photoinduced charge carriers account for their photocatalytic efficacy. This study is part of a research project investigating the relationship between two compounds with different structures and properties.

Impact of rare earth oxide on ZnFe2O4: structural, magnetic properties, and hyperthermia efficiency

“…The significant resonance signal also points to the coexistence of Zn 2+ , Fe 3+ , and RE 3+ ions. These behaviors are very similar to those of other samples of ZF nanocomposites [64][65][66].…”